The Road To Nowhere
by Caitlyn Rose
Summary: Seth, Summer, Ryan and Marissa take a year out before college to do some travelling - first stop Rome! Lots of SS with a little RM
1. Default Chapter

**Chapter 1**

The four of them stood in the departure lounge, all suddenly feeling a lot younger than their eighteen years …

Even Ryan seemed to be in the mood for cuddles as Kirsten became emotional,

'I just can't believe you're leaving already,' she blubbed, 'what am I gonna do without my boys, huh? And Ella's going to miss you so much!''

'Mom, she's eighteen months old, she won't even notice we're gone,' Seth said, reaching over to hug her.

'She will so!' Kirsten protested, holding him tightly.

'Your mother's right,' chimed in Sandy, 'Ella's gonna see a big difference around the place now – she'll know her brothers are gone alright'

'Oh my god Sandy, are you trying to make me cry or something?' Ryan joked, trying to lighten the mood.

Sandy smiled and took Ryan's hand. 'I'll miss you son'

Now Ryan really was close to tears and stepped back, swallowing furiously as Seth exchanged a few final words with his dad.

Jimmy Cooper and Julie Cooper-Nichol had both turned out to wave off their precious baby and, true to form, were sniping away at each other, dragging up the past.

'Oh Please Julie, you would have driven any man insane! Surely you don't think it's just me who had a problem with you telling our four-year-old I would buy her a boat if she left you alone to do your pilates!'

' Yeah, well, anyways, I'd better go, thanks for coming you guys – bye!' said Marissa hurriedly, already speeding off to wait by the door, having had just about as much as she could take.

'Bye kiddo – have fun' shouted her dad.

'Marissa, wait!' called Julie. Marissa turned around.

'I love you sweetie'

'I know you do mom. I love you too'

Neil Roberts lat go of his daughter just long enough to extend a warm hand to Seth.

'Look after her for me, won't you?'

'Dad!' Summer admonished, 'I'm a big girl now'

'Don't worry, I'll try to keep her out of trouble,' Seth replied earning himself a cynical glance from Summer's direction.

Seth shared an easy smile with Summer's dad and thought how decidedly strange it was that in the past couple of years, ever since Seth stopped looking like he might devirginize this man's only daughter, Neil Roberts had miraculously gotten a whole lot nicer ;)

Finally, after what seemed like hours, the flight was called and there was just nothing left to say. 'Goodbye' was already getting old. With one last parting wave to their families, Ryan, Marissa, Seth and Summer turned around and walked side by side towards the terminal.

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Well, i really enjoy writing this so i'll probably continue whether i get any reviews or not but if you wanted to leave a message that would be really critisim is welcome as i know i have a lot to improve on. Any suggestions or ideas for places you think might be good for them to vist would also be great :)


	2. Chapter 2

**The Road To Nowhere – Chapter 2**

Everyone was quiet as they took their seats on the aeroplane – first class of course. Collectively, they looked rather like lost puppies as opposed to blissful 18 year-olds - done with high school, free of parents and with obscene amounts of money burning a hole in their pockets.

Summer, meanwhile, had bigger problems and was fighting a losing battle with the overhead locker – quite simply, her bag was about 3 times as big as any normal person's. But, apparently, perseverance can make miracles happen as she did eventually manage to get everything stuffed in. She stood back to admire her accomplishment but was quickly deflated as everything popped back out again and scattered all over the floor.

Everyone laughed at the spectacle of Summer so genuinely crestfallen at such an event. The girl in question turned around to face her friends and saw how her unwitting blunder had suddenly lighted the mood. Her face broke into a smile.

'Come on guys, we're going to Rome! Rome! Can you believe that?! Do you _know _how many shops they have there?!

'No', replied Ryan dryly, 'But I know how many Coliseums they have, how many Vaticans, how many Trevi Fountains …

'Whatever!' Summer continued, on a roll and not about to let anyone stop her, 'the point is that we should be happy! Goodbyes are tough, yeah, but I've said plenty of them and I know dwelling on it isn't gonna make any difference. We need to snap out of it already!'

'You're right Sum,' Marissa consented, 'I mean, we've been waiting forever for this kind of opportunity'

'Exactly!' Summer beamed, as Marissa and Ryan each took an earphone of the iPod and cuddled up together, looking like they wanted to be picked up by Hallmark any minute.

With one crisis solved, she turned back to another and looked perplexed.

'How much stuff did you actually bring Summer? Seth asked, voice dripping with disdain.

'A _lot_,' she answered 'This is just my flight bag'

'You're not gonna wanna carry it all'

'Yeah, well, that part does suck. But on the plus side, I'll have the perfect dress for every occasion.'

'There won't _be _any occasions Sum – we've actually just left the Events capital of North America. We'll be tourists, y' know? Seeing the sights. All you're gonna need is a pair of those khaki shorts with pockets, a tee shirt, a fold up rain coat and one of those cameras on a string.'

'Well,' Summer countered, 'who's to say some gorgeous Italian guy won't come and sweep me off my feet, huh Cohen?'

'An Italian Guy?' Seth looked pained. 'Oh no, please Summer, that's so clichéd.' And anyway, I'm supposed to be looking after you now, so you can't go doing any naughty things.'

'Cohen', Summer said wearily, 'Would you just stop talking and listen to the safety instructions? I mean, we wouldn't want you plummeting to your death now, would we?'

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Thanks so much for the reviews last time, they were very much appreciated! I hope you enjoyed this chapter - it would really help if you could leave a comment telling me what you liked and didn't like so i can improve in future. Hopefully i will have an update fairly soon ...


	3. Chapter 3

Their luggage had, typically, been the very last to come through baggage claim and this misfortune, combined with the scorching heat succeeded in making all four teens very hot and bothered.

When they finally reached their destination, The Grand Hotel Plaza, all anyone wanted to do was order room service and sleep off the jet-lag – there would be plenty of time left for sightseeing and sunbathing later.

Marissa and Ryan had wanted to share a suite – which suited Summer perfectly – now someone else would have to endure Marissa's snoring.

She was completely happy to be rooming with Seth – and she knew he felt the same. They were best friends. Summer still wasn't sure how that had happened. First they were dating, and then he left on his boat. Then he came back and they weren't anymore. It was simple. Drama-free.

Slowly, over the year that followed, Seth had become a just little bit cooler … and she had become just a little bit less so. It became sort of socially acceptable for them to hang out in this new middle ground – and they did. With Ryan and Marissa living in each other's pockets it would have been practically impossible not to. Summer still smiled when she thought that despite (or perhaps because of) everything that had happened – her bitchiness, his abandonment, the break up – Seth Cohen still knew her better than anyone else in the world.

The two of them flopped down on Seth's king size bed.

'This hotel's not half bad' Seth murmured appreciatively

'uh huh' Summer said in agreement, really too tired to talk, or even to get up and go to her own room of the suite.

'My shoulder is killing me from the bags' Summer continued, after a moment of silence.

'Aww, poor baby'

'Thanks Cohen, real sincere.'

'Well, c'mere,' he said, sitting up. 'I'll give you a massage then but after that I'm going to sleep.

Summer turned around quickly, before he could change his mind, so she was lying flat on her front and rested her head in her arm.

Seth started up near her neck and worked his way out towards her shoulders, applying pressure and then releasing it at just the right time.

'God Cohen, you're really good at this!'

'Well, I aim to please!'

'Maybe you should become a masseuse', she joked, ' even open up your own place someday'

Seth appeared to ponder this carefully before replying, 'Yeah, that's true. He moved down her back, gently manipulating her smooth skin. 'But then I'd have to grow a moustache and I'm not really great with the facial hair.'

'Actually Seth I really think you could pull off the handle b – Summer stopped mid-sentence – 'yeah, that's really good, right there, you're gonna have to do this every day now y'know' – 'anyway, what was I saying?'

'I dunno Summer – you were babbling on about nothing. Have you noticed you do that unbelievably often? Cause, not to make you feel self-conscious? …but I have. Noticed, I mean.'

'Well, I got it off you so you can't complain'

'Are you saying I ramble?'

'Yep' she replied casually, reluctantly dragging herself back up to sitting position

'I do not ramble! I just have a lot to say and take pleasure in expressing it in a highly animated manner.'

'Oh I know you do Cohen … do think I'm likely to forget lunch with my dad?'

'Ok, I'll admit that was … ill-timed, but the man worships me now! All's well that ends well and all that'

'Whatever Cohen, sometimes I think you talk just to make noise.'

'You love it!'

Summer slung her arm affectionately round his neck and looked into his big brown eyes. 'Yeah, I do'

Seth smiled and she smiled back

Suddenly Summer jumped up, apparently bounding with energy. 'Ok, you gotta help me move my stuff'

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ok - i realise this chapter isn't great. I wanted to update and this is what came out - it's just a filler really i guess. I promise i will write about something remotely interesting soon! Please leave a review - i loved reading the comments last time.


	4. Chapter 4

The hotel had a breakfast room on the roof terrace and so they had all decided to meet up there for something to eat and to discuss the plans.

All of the tables had white linen umbrellas overhead to protect against the blazing sun and the view was simply incredible. There were flowers everywhere and in the distance the old buildings at the top of the Spanish Steps could be seen.

Marissa and Ryan were already midway through breakfast when Seth and Summer rushed in.

'Sorry we're late Coop, Cohen wouldn't get out of bed,' Summer said hurriedly, shooting a glare at a slightly dishevelled looking Seth.

Marissa waved away her apology, 'It's cool – go get something to eat before everything's gone and we'll talk'

When everyone was settled at the table with orange juice and bagels, Marissa again began to speak.

'So what do you guys wanna do today? Ryan and I were thinking maybe we could go to the Vatican?

'Yeah', Summer replied, 'I was thinking maybe we could go to the pool.'

'Come on', Ryan added, 'you can do that in Newport any time you like when we get back.'

'I guess so,' Summer shrugged, 'I guess if we don't go, we can't tell people we've been.'

Seth, having just drunk a cup of black coffee in one gulp, finally seemed like he was on the same planet and entered the conversation.

'Well, I'm not even Christian, never mind Catholic so …'

'I think they'll still let you in Seth' Summer said scornfully, then, as an afterthought, 'And if they ask about your Jew-fro just say it was weird genes'

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The amount of people outside the Vatican was astounding. People of different cultures and races, from every country of the world had turned out to see this famous sight.

Seth, Summer, Ryan and Marissa stood in line for almost an hour and went through all the security checks before they even got near the entrance. Summer had to borrow Seth's jacket because, apparently, it was, like, disrespectful or something to go in without your shoulders and knees covered.

Finally they walked in and it was … pretty impressive. Massive. They looked around to see people spontaneously bursting into tears – so happy to be in this place that was central to everything they believed in.

Towards the front there was a vast, ornate alter where the Blessed Sacrament was exposed and many people knelt there – praying silently.

The four teenagers suddenly felt very … insignificant. Like they were intruding on these people's private, sacred moments with … God? … and really had no right to be doing so. They wandered around quietly, gazing in awe at the sculptures and paintings – you didn't have to be a holy joe to appreciate their brilliance - and finally, walked back outside – the sunshine almost blinding after dim candle light.

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'So, is anybody up for climbing to the top of the dome?' Seth suggested.

'Nah dude you know how I feel about the heights' Ryan answered.

'I'll go' Summer smiled 'We can take an elevator though, right?'

'I dunno, probably. How bout you Marissa?'

'I'll just stay here with Ryan – I wanna get a souvenir or something for Kaitlin anyway so …'

They headed towards the side entrance as Seth tilted his head towards Summer's and said dramatically,

'Finally, we're alone! There's something I've been meaning to tell you.'

Summer recognised this mock serious tone and smiled 'don't tell me – you're in love with me, huh?

'Oh my God, you feel it too!'

'What can I say, I just have this effect on people – and please don't say God at the Vatican'

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There was, in fact, an elevator to the top as Summer had hoped so they paid 10 euros apiece and got on.

When it finally stopped they saw a spiral staircase.

'I can't believe this, even Jesus is trying to swindle us!' Seth hissed in a very un-subtle whisper.

Summer hit him frantically 'Shut up Seth! You really need to start saying things quietly to yourself before you open your mouth! If it sounds bad in your head it will sound worse when you say it out loud, ok!

She paused and continued, 'Anyway, I'm sure it's only a few steps. After all, we took the elevator …'

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I wanted to write more but i have to go to bed! I hope this chapter didn't have to much religion stuff in it for people ..

By the way, if anybody ever goes to Rome they should stay in the Grand Hotel Plaza cos it's gorgeous and in a perfect location in the city!

As you can probably tell, this is now well and truely a Seth/Summer fic. I can't write Ryan and Marissa because i just don't care enough about them.

I had a crappy day at school yesterday and all the reviews really cheered me up - thank you! Please let me know what you thought of this chapter ... i'll try to update soon.


	5. Chapter 5

Every time they turned a corner on the spiral staircase, they told themselves it would be the last. But the steps seemed to continue endlessly.

'Elevator my ass' Seth said to himself, knowing his friend wasn't really in the mood for conversation.

Summer looked awful – she was as white as a ghost and her pupils were beginning to dilate. She felt as though she would never reach the top and there were only two possible outcomes. Either she would stumble and fall forward or she would faint and fall backward against the hard stone floor.

There was no way of getting down as a steady stream of fellow tourists followed behind them and the passage was to narrow for dual way walking.

As they continued in their ascension, the walls began to slope sideways, closing in on them. Seth could hear Summer's breathing getting shorter and more laborious. He hoped for her sake that the whole nightmare would be over soon.

Suddenly he heard her cry out in distress. He spun around quickly to see what was wrong.

'I'm sorry,' she whimpered 'I just …' She paused for a moment, feeling dizzy and fatigued. She took a deep breath and began again. 'I just tripped is all … I'm sorry … I…'

'Here, come walk in front of me and I'll guide you up,' Seth said, much preferring to have her where he could keep an eye on her. He squeezed against the slanted wall to let her through and she grabbed his hand on the way past.

Summer appeared to be a lot calmer about this new arrangement. She concentrated hard on regulating her breathing and kept a firm grip on Seth's hand. She really just couldn't believe that this whole thing was actually happening and wished she wasn't being such a baby about it all.

Abruptly, she stopped.

The first set of stairs had ended. But there were more. The same spiral style only this time, they were half crumbling away and there was a rope acting as a handrail. A _rope._

Apparently this was simply more than Summer could take as big silent tears rolled down her cheeks. She wiped them away with the back of her hand, embarrassed to be causing such a fuss. 'I can't do that, I need to go back down' 

'Hey, you don't wanna have come all this way for nothing – it's only a couple more now,' Seth replied as he pulled her into a hug, smoothing down her hair and rocking them both slowly from side to side.

Seth's comfort must have had the desired effect because, somehow, they both did make it up those last few steps and, finally, they arrived at the top.

They gazed out at the symmetry of Vatican City and realised that the whole ordeal had been totally…. not worth it!

It was beautiful, yes. But Seth would have appreciated it as much from a postcard and he knew Summer wouldn't exactly be in a rush to get back there. He supposed it was just because they were both so wound up and tense that they couldn't really process what an amazing sight this was. So he took a photo for posterity and, having been at the top for less than ninety seconds, suggested, 'You wanna go?'

Summer nodded and smiled faintly. 'Feel my legs,' she said.

Seth looked down and saw nothing the matter with Summer's legs – in fact he would go as far as to say they were looking excellent – but he bent down anyway and touched her calf. She was shaking like a leaf. He leaned over and kissed her forehead. 'I'm really sorry I put you through this'

'What? You didn't put me through anything. It's the stupid Vatican and their stupid tourist hoax!

'Well, it was my idea to come up here in the first place so …'

'So nothing Cohen. I'm glad you were there – otherwise I really would have lost it'

Back with both feet on the ground again, Seth and Summer had regained their composure by the time they met up with Ryan and Marissa.

'So how was it, man? Did JC stop by or anything? Ryan asked.

'Sadly no, but I guess he doesn't have much time for social calls'

'Aww, that's too bad,' Marissa chimed it, 'so was it amazing?

Summer smiled at her friend, her laughing eyes darting back to Seth. 'Oh yeah – it was a once-in-a-lifetime alright.'

Once again, returning to their hotel suites that night, all four of them were exhausted and turned in at about eleven thirty.

'I guess we're getting too old for partying huh? All we want is a nice cup of tea and some fleecy pyjamas' Marissa had laughed.

Summer lay in bed and wondered why she wasn't sleeping like a baby by now. Maybe she was still messed up from the time difference or something.

She put down her book and went to grab her robe. She knew he would be awake too.

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ok, that was kind of pointless .. but anyway. A lot of people seem to be impatient for Seth and Summer to get together as a couple but if that happens it's not gonna be for a while yet because i cannot bear rushed writing - i think it ruins a lot of the best Seth and Summer fics. I intend to take my time with it but i will update often so i hope that is alright with everybody.

I know all of the authors say they how much they appreciate reviews - and it is actually true, the make my day :)


	6. Chapter 6

Summer padded across to Seth's room and knocked gently on the door. This was just a formality as she strode on through without bothering to wait for an answer. He already had his bedside lamp on but was lying down, trying to drift off to sleep. He sat up when he realised he had a visitor and smiled. 

'Hey'

'Hey,' Summer replied. 'You awake?' 

'No Summer I just have this talent for conducting conversations when I'm in a semi-conscious state.'

Summer rolled her eyes, knowing she'd walked right into that one. 'You wanna schooch over?'

Seth obliged and Summer slid in beside him, propping herself up on the many luxurious pillows.

How'd you know I was up? Seth asked.

'Just knew' she answered simply.

He understood that and didn't question it for a second. She just knew. She always just knew.

'You can't sleep either huh?'

'No – and I don't know why, especially after such a long day. I guess I was tired but not sleepy, if you know what I mean.'

'Yeah, me too. Did you bring anything with you to do ?

'Not really, just a couple of books. You?'

'Well, actually, now that you mention it, I-'

Summer cut him off abruptly. 'Sorry, we're not playing video games Cohen!

'If you'd let me finish, I was gonna say I brought travel connect four. But I dunno if you wanna play.

'Sure I do'

'You _will_ lose though. Repeatedly. And I don't wanna get hurt when you're pissed off''

God Cohen, it's connect four – we're hardly talking a high risk situation here.

'Oka-ay, but on your head be it' Seth cautioned.

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Twenty minutes later and Seth had won five games straight. Predictably, Summer was not happy.

On his sixth win, she had had as much as she could take.

'Oh my God I saw that! You so cheated! _You_ are nothing but a …. cheater,' she finished lamely.

'Summer. Sweetie,' Seth said patronisingly. 'I am the master of vertical strategy games ok? You will never beat me at those. Now, I know that's hard for you to accept but you are just going to have to make your peace with it.'

Whatever, I've had enough. You wanna watch a movie or something?

'It's 2.47 in the morning, shouldn't we try and get some sleep? I mean, Ryan and Marissa are gonna be pissed if we aren't out for breakfast by like 10.30'

'Believe me, judging by what Rissa had planned for tonight, they'll both me asleep till well after midday'

'Woah, ok, there's a nice visual image. You pick the movie and I'll get some food. We can't watch a movie without food.'

You're letting me choose what we watch? Summer questioned, incredulously. You have never let me select a movie in the whole time I've known you!

'Yeah, well I guess we should come to Rome more often then,' Seth called back from the kitchen and Summer could sense the smile on his face. 'I figure after all this time I'm bound to have educated you in the ways of a quality cinematic experience'

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Seth returned to the bedroom, laiden down with dishes of chips, dips and candy.

'So what did you g - Are you kidding me Summer?! Please, _please _tell me you didn't already pay for that!'

'Cohen,' Summer admonished, 'It's the greatest love story of our time'

'No! No, no, no! That's 'Romeo and Juliet' Summer! _This,_' he said looking disgustedly at the widescreen and pausing for effect, '_This _is just a big ship with some British chick and a really, really good looking guy!'

'A little bit too emphatic there Cohen – and anyway I know you have a Celine Dion album!

'I do _not! _And anyway, what the hell has she got to do with anything?!'

'Um, hello! She was on the Titanic soundtrack Cohen!

'Pity she wasn't just on the Titanic. Period! This is _why_ I don't let you pick movies Summer!'

'Please. Think back to all the times I've gone to the I-Max with you, huh?'

'I know, but, God – this lasts about twelve hours … and you'll cry. You know I hate it when you cry – I'm a guy, I have no idea how to deal with it. And then, there's the whole sinking thing, which frankly, I find disturbing. You know, doesn't it strike you as somewhat sadistic, inhumane, even, that we should take such a disaster and call it entertainment?'

'Seth Cohen – you are so annoying! This is gonna be good, I promise! We can just lay here and pig out and watch this totally amazing, _oscar winning _film! You can be Harry and I can be Sally, ok?

'Actually, just this once, I think I'd like to try being Sally' Seth answered, rolling his eyes.

'Sure thing baby, if you think you can pull off a fake orga' – Summer stopped and gazed in awe at the television screen, 'It's starting.'

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'Holy crap that woman is old!' Seth said, clearly bored out of his mind.

'I know, and yet she still loves Jack – isn't that so sweet?' Summer replied, totally absorbed in the story and missing his tone completely.

'You think we'll know each other when we're ninety?' he asked

'Of course' she answered, turning to face him now. 'Why? Don't you?'

I dunno, I mean, things happen, right? I can see exactly where you're headed Summer Roberts. Everything you've ever wanted, you're gonna get' Seth looked down at his hands and continued.

'Some perfect guy is gonna come along and you're gonna move to Florida or somewhere, have ten kids and become the ultimate mom – with a high powered career on the side of course'

'Yeah well, you're right. You never know, that might happen.' Summer seemed to have forgotton all about Leonardo DiCaprio at this point and was looking earnestly at the boy sitting beside her. 'But you know what you are to me. I promise you, that will never change. You're one of a kind Cohen and I'm gonna need you to keep me in good humour when I've got varicose veins and warts.'

'It's a deal' Seth laughed and put his arm around her, pulling her close up against him. She laid her other arm across his chest and smiled up at him.

'Friends forever?'

'Friends forever.'

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Sorry if that was a little cheesy! Please review!


	7. Chapter 7

Ok, so I haven't updated in a couple of days and I feel like I probably should otherwise I'll end up letting it fall by the wayside. Just to let you all know - I have no idea what's gonna happen in this chapter and am kinda going through one of those periods where you think every single word you write is just total crap – I'm sure anyone who's ever written _anything_ will know what I mean … apologies in advance.

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Seth awoke with a start and wrestled with the sheets, which had gotten tangled in the night. He could feel an uncomfortable creak in his neck and turned around slowly.

That's when he saw her. She was … beautiful …. And she was back in his bed.

'Oh god' he moaned to himself, bringing his hands up to his face in utter bewilderment 'Oh god, oh god, oh god, what the hell happened last night?'

Seth massaged his temples, trying desperately to think back to the previous night, which seemed like a lifetime ago. It was really far too early in the morning to attempt anything requiring brain activity. He fell back against the pillow dramatically, totally confused and lamenting what he considered to be the kind of calamity reserved exclusively for _him_.

He hoped to god they hadn't done anything stupid. He hoped that when she woke up their friendship wouldn't be in tatters.

He glanced over at Summer and smiled as he observed her breathing rhythmically, her mouth upturned at the corners. She looked so serene when she was asleep, so contented, so … fully clothed.

Seth breathed a huge sigh of relief as it all came flooding back to him. The connect four. The 'Titanic' debacle. The talking. The hugging. Most importantly, the total lack of sex or similarly dim-witted behaviour.

He smiled faintly and closed his eyes. There were still three hours of quality sleeping time to be had.

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'Seth Cohen! If you do not get out of the bathroom right this second, I'm coming in there. And I think we both know that is not a happy thought!'

'I'm fixing my fro, ok? If I don't put the effort in it'll frizz by midday in this heat.'

'Seth! I don't care about your hair!'

'You're a poet and you don't know it! Every time, you make a rhyme!'

'You'll notice I'm not laughing Cohen. Stop talking! Just move! Now!'

'Yeah, I'm coming Summer, there's no need to get all schizo on me'

Summer leaned up against the bathroom door and spoke quietly.

'You know how you sometimes joke about my rage blackouts Cohen? Well, you've never actually _seen _one, have you?'

She had barely finished her sentence when she heard the door being hastily unlocked.

'Morning, Summer! Sleep well? You did, uh huh, that's great; I'm just going to be … far away.'

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Obviously, a little time apart had been good for them as Seth and Summer were sitting lazily on the couch, having forgotten the chaotic morning and surrounded by tourist information booklets.

'What's RyRissa up to today then? Summer asked

Seth smiled dryly. 'Well, Ryrissa, singular, is having some kind of romantic picnic today so I'm guessing it's just you and me baby.'

'Ok well, how 'bout we just go with the flow, see where we end up'

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Where they had ended up was just outside the Colosseum. It was a bustling area filled with tourists – and, obviously, locals trying to rip-off the tourists.

Clearly, they hadn't counted on Summer Roberts.

'You've gotta be kidding. There's no way I'm paying ten euro for one fake Prada bag. A guy down the street is giving it to me for six.

The street trader smiled warmly, as if about to make a big concession. 'I will give you for seven fifty' he said in stilted English.

Summer smiled back, enjoying the banter and appeared to visibly change tactics. She fluttered her eyelashes and looked up at him.

'I just don't think I have that much'

Seth turned away to stop himself from laughing outright.

Summer, meanwhile, continued on her little story. 'And I really _love _this bag. It would be, like, a memory of Rome. _Forever._ Every time I looked at it I would think of you'.

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'Four euros! You gotta say Cohen, that is one hell of a result!' Summer shrieked, delighted with her purchase.

'Why did you even want it anyway, I didn't think knock-offs were your style.'

Summer looked at him pityingly. He really was clueless.

'Ok … people will see that this bag is Prada, right? Now, if it was anyone else they would definitely think 'fake' but I'm a special case Cohen. I already own lots of different varieties of the genuine article so this isn't even going to cause suspicion. And anyway, it was four bucks! Can you believe that guy was trying to make me pay ten?!'

'Hardly.'

Suddenly Seth's eyes lit up and he sped off down the road towards a stall in the distance. Summer hurried after him and stopped when she finally caught him up.

'Print tees Cohen?'

Seth looked in seventh heaven. 'Vintage tees Summer. Vintage. And I'm talking real vintage, not the ones that look vintage but then Abercrombie make you pay $100 for one.'

He held up a red shirt saying on it:

'Don't smoke.

Don't Drink

Die Anyway.'

Whadday think? He questioned.

'I think you need to stop buying clothes for the comedy value.'

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Hope it wasn't too bad - please review because i really, really appreciate it.


	8. Chapter 8

The 'gang' sat at the top of the Spanish steps and looked down at the throngs of tourists doing just the same as them – eating lunch bought straight from the market.

'This is pretty amazing, huh?' said Seth to no one in particular.

Nobody answered but he continued on, regardless. 'I mean, what would we be doing in Newport right now?

'Sleeping' Summer answered, licking her lips having just polished off her third consecutive salmon sandwich.

'Exactly, Summer, exactly. Thank you for proving my point. We would be sleeping – wasting our lives away. And yet here we are – good company, good food …. very good view.

The other three followed Seth's gaze and looked down the steps. There, stood a beautiful twenty something, short black hair, olive skin and – the clincher – legs up to her armpits.

Ryan and Marissa just rolled their eyes good-naturedly at one another while Summer sat up and pushed him playfully.

'Oh my god Cohen, trust you! You're in one of the most beautiful cities in the world and all you can think about right now is looking up another girl's skirt!'

'Another girl? Another girl as opposed to who Summer? Or should I say, whom?'

Summer felt her face flush while Marissa and Ryan looked on, eager to see how she would get out of this one.

'Uh …' Summer fumbled, not knowing what to say.

'Come now Sum, don't be shy' Seth prodded mischievously, clearly enjoying himself immensely.

'Slip of the tongue, Cohen. Or a flashback to junior year when we all went to The Vegas. Hey Marissa did I ever tell you about that trip?'

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'It feel's like forever since we've hung out, just the two of us' Marissa said, linking her arm through Summer's.

'I know what you mean,' her friend replied. 'So how's everything with you and Ryan?'

'Good thanks, yeah, we're …,' Marissa paused and appeared to consider something carefully before saying , 'actually Sum, there's something I wanted to talk to you about' She rushed and stumbled over her words as if she just wanted to get it out there.

'Sure, what's up?' Summer stopped walking and turned to face Marissa.

'It's about you and Seth. Are you still in love with him? Cause Ryan and I were talking and we think you're still in love with him.'

'What?!' Summer exhaled deeply. 'Why did you think that?'

'Uh, gee, I dunno Summer. Maybe because neither of you have really had a serious relationship since each other. Or because you spend every waking moment either talking _to _him or talking _about _him. Or because –

'Yeah, alright Coop, I get where you're going with this! Look, you don't understand what it's like between us, ok? We just _get _each other. And it's easy and it's simple and it's … Cohen. Y'know what I mean?'

Summer paused for breath and continued, 'Being together like that would just mess everything up. I dunno, maybe for you and Ryan it's different. Maybe you're gonna get married and have kids and live in a big house and do the whole thing. But you still gotta face it. Most people do not end up with their high school sweethearts. I figure I at least got a friend for life.'

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Ryan and Seth ambled along the streets of Rome, making their way back to the hotel in a relaxed silence.

'So Seth,' Ryan spoke up, 'here's the thing. Are you still in love with Summer? Cause Marissa and I were talking and we think you're still in love with Summer.'

'Wow man, don't beat about the bush will ya? Umm … no, I'm not still in love with Summer.'

'You sure? Cause, I mean you gotta admit there is some pretty convincing evidence to the contrary.'

'I guess. Ryan, dude, our relationship is just … I dunno. I don't even know what it is Ryan, we're just … _us_. And right now she's my friend. I'm happy with that. That's enough.'

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Later that evening, Seth and Summer met up back at their suite.

'So, I had a weird conversation with Riss today', Summer said, jumping on Seth's bed and settling herself there, sitting Indian-style. Lately, somehow his room had merged into _their _room and they spent most of their time in the suite there. It was filled with all of their mess and clutter but, for now at least, it was home.

'You don't say. I had a weird converstion with Ryan this afternoon too' Seth replied with a wry smile.

'So he asked you … that' she finished uncertainly.

'yep'

'well, what did you say?'

'What did _you_ say?'

'I asked you first'

Seth sighed. This was getting them nowhere. 'I said I wasn't in love with you. You said the same.'

'Yeah' Summer confirmed.

'I guess I know you too well' Seth smiled. 'You know even, we were dating we never actually said it. There was no big Ryrissa 'I love you moment.'

'Well, we didn't need one. We knew.'

'So,' Summer said, grinning, 'just to clarify – you're not in love with me and I'm not in love with you.'

'That about sums it up.'

'Good to know where we're at.'

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Ok, hope you liked - not sure if i do to be honest. Please review and let me know if you have any ideas for where this should go - just stuff they could do or conversations they could have or whatever - anything would be welcome :) I'll try to update soon :)


	9. Chapter 9

'Can you believe this is our last full day here?' asked Ryan as they all ate breakfast on the terrace . 'I'm sure gonna miss this view'

'And the weather,' Summer added. 'Even in August I hear London is freezing.'

'Well, I guess we'll just have to make the most of it then. How bout we go back to the suites and change, meet in the foyer in … say, thirty minutes and we'll head out.' Seth suggested.

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The telephone rang shrilly in Seth and Summer's suite.

'Sum! It's my mom, she wants to – oh God, I uh ….' Seth stopped short having just barged into Summer's room and looked … anywhere, just _away._

'God, get a hold of yourself Cohen! It's not like you haven't seen me in a bra before! In fact, I believe we first met in a similar situation. I guess you must have undergone some kinda hormonal revolution cause I sure outdid your shoelaces for a view back then.'

'No, it's not that … I mean, you, uh, _they _are …. Uh, I'm actually incapable of processing thought right now but you know what Summer? You need to go talk to my mom, she's on line one.'

Summer smiled sardonically and walked over to the phone, still not bothering to put on a shirt. She settled herself on an armchair, picking up the receiver.

'Hey Kirsten! So how is everybody?'

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'So - now that you're dressed and we can talk again - I couldn't help noticing that my mom called you.'

'How very observant of you! They don't call you Seth 'vigilante' Cohen for nothing do they?

Seth replied with an oh-so-tolerant smile, 'That's cute! Hey Summer, why did my mom call you?'

'To check up on you.' Summer answered nonchalantly.

'What? She still wants to know if I'm eating my greens? I can't believe that, I mean, I am a very responsible son!'

'Well, no offence, but you do have a history of screwing up the simplest of tasks spectacularly. And anyway,' Summer continued swiftly, 'She wanted to fill me in on all the news.'

'News?' Seth visibly perked up, 'As in gossip? Dish the dirt Sum, you

know I love a good chit-chat.'

'Who'd have thought it, huh Cohen? Out of the pair of us, _you're_ the one who's a newpsie wannabe. She actually just filled me in on normal stuff – Work's going well, Hailey is home with some boyfriend from Alabama, Ella misses you heaps'

'Aww, I miss her too! I bet she's really big now.'

'Yeah, I know – she'll be such a cutie. We'll see them at Chrismukkah in Paris anyway, just a couple more months.'

'Yeah, it'll fly past. We better get going actually, see what treats Marissa and Ryan have got lined up for us today.'

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The four of them whizzed around Rome on that last day – the general idea being to go to all of the sights, take a quick Polaroid and move on the next photo opportunity.

By the time the evening came they were all exhausted and nearly falling asleep as they sat waiting for dinner to arrive in a quaint little open air restaurant.

'I propose a toast!' Ryan said suddenly, tearing everyone away from their thoughts.

'umm … _why_? Seth questioned in confusion.

'Because! It's our last night in Rome and someone should say something.'

'For a man of few words you're unusually forthcoming tonight Ry,' Summer remarked with a smile

'Yeah …' Ryan paused awkwardly. 'Well, Rome has been … y'know …. great …. let's hope London is equally as, uh, great.'

'Cheers!' Seth chimed in, 'London Calling!'

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Yep, that's Rome done! I don't really think i captured the essence of the city too well but hopefully i'll get better ... please review - it makes my day!


	10. Chapter 10

'Summer, would you move, we're going to miss the plane!'

'Chill out Cohen, you're going purple.'

They had reached as far as the terminal building when Summer suddenly realised she had forgotten her hat at the café and simply _had_ to go back and get it.

Ryan and Marissa had gone on to board and were supposed to be telling the airline staff that their friends had gone to find some urgent medication.

Now, Summer was ambling along, looking as if they were out for a stroll on the beach, and Seth appeared to think that walking twice as fast would make up for it.

'This better be one very impressive hat Summer Roberts' Seth muttered.

'Well, it was one very expensive hat which is pretty much the same thing. And anyway, you know what it looks like, you saw me leave the suite with it on my head this morning.'

'I did ? … oh yeah, I did' Seth answered.

'Great, well then, tell me truthfully, did you think it was right for my face shape because-

' - You know what they say baby, beauty suits a dishcloth' Seth cut her off briskly and took her by the hand, literally dragging her down the long corridor.

'I think I can walk myself, Seth' Summer said cynically, looking down at their entwined hands.

'Yeah? Well humour me.'

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'Excuse me?' Summer said sweetly, 'Have you seen a hat? A really pretty one? Cause if you did it's probably mine.'

The waitress at subway clearly only kept her job through people pointing at the fillings they wanted in their sandwiches because she apparently didn't speak a word of English.

For a good few minutes Summer and Seth did that typical American tourist thing of vainly hoping that if they just said the English word _loudly _enough, or in an Italian accent, they were sure to get their meaning across.

When this proved wholly unsuccessful Summer resorted to mime, gesturing frantically towards her head and mouthing the word 'hat' enthusiastically. Eventually Seth decided props were the best way to go and grabbed a hat off the head of a gentleman sitting close by.

Comprehension dawned on the waitress as she plucked Summer's burgundy beanie hat from behind the counter, with a questioning look.

Summer looked as though she was being reunited with a long lost family member as took the hat and gave the waitress a huge thumbs up, while shoving the black top hat back onto the baffled gentleman's head.

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'God, who'd have thought that would be such a big deal?' Summer said breezily as the exited the shop.

'Me. Summer, we have exactly 7.5 minutes before the plane takes off and I would really like us to be on it.' Seth was getting flustered and broke into a sprint about halfway through his sentence.

'Cohen! Do you really think I can run in these shoes?'

'I don't care, try!'

'You know' Summer called breathlessly as she struggled to catch up with him, 'I really thought that this kinda thing only ever happened in, like, Macauley Culkin movies.'

'Yeah, turns out it actually happens in real life. Oh god, I need to lie down.'

'Just take it easy for a minute ok?' Summer arrived next to him and slipped her arm through his. ' They haven't even called our name out through the speakers yet – that mean's we're making pretty good time.'

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After halls and passages that seemed to go on forever – they at last reached the boarding desk, where an air hostess was tapping her foot impatiently.

'Sorry we're late we, uh, had a crisis. Of the medical kind' Seth panted.

'Life threatening,' Summer added for emphasis.

The hostess remained unmoved. 'Your names please?

'Seth and Summer Cohen' Seth wheezed.

'Uh, no!' he caught himself just in time. 'Seth Cohen and Summer Roberts' he corrected, looking over at Summer, embarrassed to feel his cheeks reddening.

She just smiled up at him though, as if to wave away his shyness.

'C'mon Cohen. I told you we'd make it.'

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All the other passengers glared at them as Seth and Summer took their seats on the plane – indignant to notice Ryan and Marissa doing the whole, 'No, of course we're not with them' thing.

'Ugh, so how long, is this, flight, anyhow,' Summer asked disjointedly as she struggled to get comfortable in the small space with all her travel paraphernalia cluttered around her.

'About two hours I think. Long enough for a connect four marathon.'

'Not a chance Seth Cohen, I've got Cosmo.'

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	11. Chapter 11

'Finally, we're actually going shopping!' Summer exclaimed happily. 'This couldn't have come at a better time you guys, cause apparently green is this season's colour and I own, like, hardly _any_ green. 

A few days into their trip to London and the poor weather combined with a lack of any better suggestions had resulted in the boys caving in – they were headed to Harrods.

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'Ok, so I'm thinking the best approach would be just to stay focused on the fact that this is only gonna be, like, four hours out of our lives, I mean, we can cope with that, right?' Ryan looked over conspiratorially at his friend, a frown forming on his brow.

'I dunno' Seth glanced up at the girls striding ahead, arms linked, giggling over something as if the were still sixteen. 'As soon as Summer hits the limit on her own credit card she won't hesitate to 'borrow' mine. You know how powerless I am when it comes to that girl.'

'Yeah, seems like all she has to do is look at you and you're just that sixteen-year-old … how can I put this diplomatically? … freak, geek, general nerd?'

'Thanks man, variety is _indeed_ the spice of life' Seth replied dryly.

'It's that old quandary - so many adjectives so little time, y'know?'

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An hour and twenty outfits later, Summer popped her head outside the changing room cubicle again.'

'Hey Seth?' she called … 'Seth! Could you swap this skirt for an eight baby, I can't get the hang of the British sizing system'

'Of course' Seth said brightly – many years ago he had realised that total subservience was really the only way to escape unscathed from a shopping trip with Summer Roberts.

'Wait,' he paused, staring in amazement at the tiny strip of material she had just passed out. 'You know what, I really don't think you're going to be needing a smaller size Sum, I mean, I dunno about you but I think this fall is gonna be cold and you know what that means – yes, that's it exactly, risk of bronchitis, pneumonia …'

'Well, I'm gonna come down with something right now if you leave me standing here in my underwear any longer!' Summer said crossly, in a low voice, her head appearing through the curtain.

Seth gulped at the image rapidly forming in his head and desperately tried to push it away – Summer noticed and couldn't help feeling quietly elated. She knew she still drove him crazy.

But Seth ploughed on, undeterred. 'I'm just thinking about your safety! Aside from the health risks you have all the perverts – you may not think it but let me assure they are out there, just waiting to … _pounce. _Obviously it's your decision but all I'm saying is that I think you should reconsider. I've always thought you suited the calf-length skirt exceptionally well actually – and few can carry it off –'

'Cohen! We are in one of the most _sacred _stores in the world and this is not acceptable behaviour!'

'I know, I'm sorry I just though being a guy and knowing how a guy's mind works I should inform you that _this_,' Seth protested gesticulating wildly to the pink material in his hand, 'is not exactly going to send … undesirables running in the opposite direction!'

'Oh my God, I can't believe you just said that!' Summer was now doing one of those yelling whispers you see in movies all the time; although it was probably wasted as they were the only customers in the changing rooms. ' Why don't you just be honest, all you really care about is another guy looking up my ass!'

'Again with the 'another' Summer – who exactly are we both supposed to be competing with here?' Seth retorted, getting angry too.

'I told you the first time it was a slip of the tongue! Look, I can't waste valuable trying-on time fighting with you – you don't want me to buy the skirt? Fine, I won't buy the skirt! It's not even that big a deal!'

'Fine!' Seth yelled, apparently having forgotten everything his mom ever taught him about polite manners.

'Fine!' Summer echoed, following his example and shouting uninhibitedly now, chastising herself in her head for such an uninspired response.

She watched as he turned around and marched out.

'Cohen!' she called just as he reached the archway leading back out to the store. 'Get back here!'

'_What_?' he asked, irritated, turning to face her.

'C'mere!'

Seth relented and moved towards her again. Before he even knew what was happening Summer pulled him into the cubicle along with her and pushed him against the wall.

And then her lips were on his. It was slow at first, almost questioning but quickly became heated and intense - an answer. Her hands found their way to his hair like they always used to while he wrapped his around her bare waist. Someone moaned as their tongues collided, exploring where they hadn't been for _so_ long.

Eventually, they both had to pause for breath and smiled at each other as they broke away.

'Wow … uh … actually, 'wow' is pretty much all I got right now. Uh, what the hell's happening here ?' Seth asked.

'I dunno.' Summer smiled. ' I just … wanted to see what that would feel like.'

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Yay! I have over 100 reviews - that's amazing, thank you! I would really appreciate your thoughts on this chapter too because i really can't tell if it's crap or not. Just to let you know, the next update will probably be boxing day at the earliest - merry chrismukka to everyone!


	12. Chapter 12

Thanks to Erica for her help a couple of weeks ago with this :)

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Now, Seth Cohen had spent the majority of his teenage years in a Summer-induced state of befuddlement. But _this_? This was all new.

'You … uh, you what now?' Seth asked quickly, dragging his tongue along his bottom lip, surprised to find cherry lip balm still lingering.

The smile faded from Summer's lips as she sank back against the opposite wall. 'Oh God,' she whispered to herself.

'Oh my God,' she repeated, groaning loudly and covering her face in her hands.

'Yeah,' Seth said by way of a reply, awkwardly shifting his weight from one foot to another. 'So, uh, I don't know what to say here and so I'm just gonna ask - how _did_ it feel?'

'Huh?' asked Summer absently.

Seth felt sheer desperation wash over him – was she actually going to make him say it? 'You wanted to see what it felt like so … any help you could give me here …'

'I …' Summer trailed off limply, 'We should probably talk about this, right?'

'Gee, y' think?'

'I was actually hoping you'd gloss it over with a joke but apparently not. Uh … ok, well, I'm gonna need to put on some, uh, clothes'

'Oh my God, yeah!' Seth answered emphatically, only just realising that Summer was standing there in just her boy-shorts and a bra. 'Well, I guess you got that one covered so I'm just gonna be out here,' he said, gesturing with his hands and backing out of the changing room. ' Let me know when you're ready and we'll go, uh, I don't know, _eat_ or something. Actually, yeah, food could work.'

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Summer had ordered what appeared to be the entire contents of the pastry selection at a small Knightsbridge café and had spent exactly seven minutes buttering one side of a jam turnover. Seth knew because he had counted every second.

'Did you tell Ryan and Marissa where we were going?' Summer asked, not taking her eyes off the butter knife.

'Nope.'

'Oh.'

'This is …'

'Awkward, yeah' Summer finished for him. 'It shouldn't be,' she continued softly, finally meeting his gaze, 'We've been friends for way too long.'

'Friends?' Seth questioned, uncertainly.

Summer propped her elbows up on the table and rested her head in her hands with a sigh. 'Seems to me we've been doing everything together these past two years except kiss. It was bound to happen sometime.'

Seth opened his mouth to speak, to just say _something,_ literally _any _words would do, but Summer beat him to it.

'Only now I'm wondering,' she continued contemplatively, 'If that's because we didn't want to or because we were just out of the habit?'

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Ok, that was short and crap and everybody deserves more after such a long wait between updates.It was just to get me back in the swing of things. I know - i suck - i have no excuse really, but i'm gonna update tomorrow and fairly regularly from now on :)

But, i am at a bit of a loss about where to go. Any ideas are welcomed! Email to or leave a comment :)

Thanks very much :)

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	13. Chapter 13

'Ughhh my god Cohen I can't handle this!' Summer exclaimed impulsively, breaking out of her silent reverie. 'We gotta start talking here, I mean, I know this entire situation is kind of mind-boggling but come on! We still have to spend the next six months of our lives together - in excruciatingly close proximity, might I add - so by the time we leave this coffee shop I would like for this … _meltdown _to be sorted.'

'You always did like to take charge Miss Roberts,' Seth commented by way of reply, a small smile playing on his lips.

'You always did like me to take charge Mr Cohen,' Summer countered, grinning back, any awkwardness between them now dissipated.

'So what's the verdict then?' Summer questioned lightly, 'Did we just screw up our entire relationship?'

'Possibly,' Seth conceded with a nod, 'but hey, it's been two years since The Tahiti/Portland Debacle, so we've had a pretty good run.'

Summer laughed, happy to feel herself falling back into their old routine, but she knew they couldn't dance around the issue forever. 'Look,' she started affectionately, 'I love you, Seth you know that. The truth is you're the single most important person in my life, especially since we came on this trip and … and I don't really think you get two chances at a friendship like ours so I just … don't wanna, wreck it, I guess …' she trailed off tentatively, acutely aware that her words were out there now and there was no way to snatch them back. 'I'm sorry?' she offered.

'No, don't say that!' Seth protested, 'you really don't have anything to be sorry for. I mean, I guess I wasn't brave enough to say it but that's pretty much how I feel too so …'

'So … we can leave now?' Summer asked, polishing off her last piece of carrot cake.

'We sure can,' Seth took this as his cue and nodded to the waiter for the cheque. 'Uh, Sum…?'

'Mmm?' was the only response he received as Summer rummaged around in her purse for some unknown object.

'I was thinking maybe we shouldn't tell people about this. Like, I don't know, say, Ryan and Marissa?'

'Gee, y'think Cohen?' Summer answered scathingly. 'Cause I was about ready to rent a billboard in Leicester Square – WE KISSED BUT WE'RE FINE WITH IT!'

'Oh, you're a funny one Summer. I love how your caustic tone sounds almost endearing to my ears. I'm paying for your lunch, by the way, no need to thank me.'

Summer just flashed him a cheesy grin and stood up, attempting to balance the weight of her many shopping bags.

'Hey Seth?' she spoke up as they headed towards the door, 'I don't want you to think that I, like, hated kissing you or anything – cause believe me I really didn't, it's just …'

'I know,' Seth interrupted, turning to look her in the eyes. 'And, just for the record, right back at you,' he finished sweetly.

'We should do it again sometime,' Summer said coyly, swinging the door of the coffee shop behind her, as she tried not to laugh at the expression on Seth's face.

That update was short and long-awaited. Not a good combination, i know. But the SS conversation was killing me because i just had no clue how to write it. I think it came out ok in the end though. I'm not going to tie myself down to a day or date, but i hope to update soon - this story is far from over :)


	14. Chapter 14

* * *

'Summer!' Seth burst into their London hotel suite and started opening doors in search of his friend. 

'Jeez Cohen, could you shout that a little louder - I couldn't quite hear you from .. what? Let's say, about five feet away?' Summer asked, emerging from the living area.

'Try ten' Seth suggested

'Whatever'

'So Sum,' Seth began casually, 'You remember how we said we were going to keep the whole 'Harrod's Incident' to ourselves?'

'Uh huh' Summer answered lightly. 'You know, I was actually making progress clearing up this mess – _your_ mess actually, so I'd better get back to it …'

She turned away to leave but Seth grabbed her by both her hands and kept a loose hold of them. He began to push her slightly so that her balance continually shifted back and forth.from her heel to her toe.

'Did you tell anyone, Summer?' Seth asked teasingly.

'Nope' was the only reply he received.

'Not even …Marissa?' he prodded

'Not even Marissa' Summer echoed, with a complete lack of conviction.

'_Summer_, sweetie,' Seth persisted smugly, still rocking her, 'I know you told her.'

'Did not' 

'You did too!'

'_Seth_,' Summer said witheringly, 'I did not'

'Oh, you totally did' Seth was starting to laugh now and sounding very pleased with himself.

'How'd you find out?' Summer fired back, starting to smile now too but keeping up the rhythm of their banter.

'Well, I was just down at the lobby and I met Marissa and she's all 'oooooh Seth, heard the big news about you and Summer',' Seth answered, adopting a high-pitched valley-girl accent, 'so, that kind of gave me a clue.'

'Huh. Yeah, subtlety's never been one of Coop's finer qualities actually' Summer mused. 'Are you mad that I told her?' she added as an afterthought.

Seth laughed to himself. How could he be mad with beautiful big brown eyes looking up at him like that?

Realising that he'd probably just been staring goofily for the last few seconds, he finally kicked into action, 'No, hey, come on, it's no big deal!'

Summer smiled. 'Thank you.' She said, sweetly, breaking the contact of their hands to step forward and hug him.

Seth dropped a quick kiss on her hair and looked down at her, nestled up against his chest. 'I just wanted to let _you know_ that _I know_ you violated the pact. That's some seriously bad karma Summer Roberts.'

* * *

Later that same day, the four were wondering around Madame Tausaud's Waxwork Museam, having spent the previous hour queueing to even get in the door.

They marvelled at how realistic all of the sculptures were – all of the 'A List' were there: Brad Pitt, Julia Roberts, the entire cast of 'Friends', Madonna, Elton John – even Tom and Nicole smiled amicably at one another.

'Oh My freaking God Marissa, it's Grady Bridges' Summer shrieked excitedly dragging her friend away from Marilyn Monroe to see the 'Valley' star standing, hand on hip, displaying a casual, 'i'm an underwear model' stance. Summer sighed contentedly as she gazed up at him.

'Sum? You do know he's not real, right?' Marissa asked, interrupting Summer's worshipping.

'Way to shatter the dream Coop. Can you believe The Valley got cancelled? I mean, I thought I was over it but this just brings it all back.'

'I can imagine' Marissa answered dryly as Summer turned back to admire Grady.

After a few minutes of total silence Marissa was getting more than a little bored. 'Actually, now that we have a chance to talk without the boys, I kind of have a confession to make' she began, hoping the lure of gossip would capture her friend's attention.

Summer just looked expectantly at her as Marissa continued hesitantlly, 'Well, I think Seth knows … about the kiss and all'

'I should hope so Coop, I mean, he _was_ there.'

'No, I mean he knows that _I _know,' Marissa clarified, beginning to look more and more uncomfortable.

'Yeah, he mentioned you said something.' Summer answered breezily as she stood back to enjoy Marissa's stunned expression.

'And he didn't have a hissy fit? I mean, you do seem remarkably upbeat about the whole thing.'

'No, he was actually really sweet about it.' Summer replied, unconsciously smiling at the recollection. 'It just goes to show how strong our friendship is I guess. That one little kiss just made me question _everything, _but we're ok, y'know? Well, we still fight like cat and dog but that's just our way of communicating – '

'It's your way of flirting' Marissa cut in knowingly.

'Don't start Coop.' Summer said sternly. 'You're lucky I'm not monumentally pissed off at you for telling the one person I expressly asked you not to tell'

'I know,' Marissa responded looking downcast. 'I'm sorry. It's all those years living in Newport – I don't know when to keep my big mouth shut.'

Summer smiled ruefully, 'It doesn't matter, we shouldn't have expected that it would stay a secret anway. I guess Ryan knows too now.'

'Well, I didn't tell him!' Marissa protested.

'Coop.' Summer said cynically. 'Look at them' She gestured towards Seth and Ryan who were at the other side of the gallery. Seth stood on a podium between Tony Blair and George Bush, looking somewhat bashful and talking intensely with Ryan. 'What do you think _that_'s about?'

'Maybe they're talking about sports' Marissa suggested innocently.

'And I'm having the Christ child, did you hear?' Summer answered sarcastically as the boys began to walk over to meet them.

They met in the middle, right next to Hugh Grant and Ryan began to chant cockily 'Summer and Seth up a tree, K-I-S-S-I-NG, first comes …'

'Oh God Ryan, please, _please _don't sing,' Seth pleaded, looking pained and even slightly disturbed by this new side to his pseudo-brother.

'What age are you Ryan? Have you lost your mind!' Summer asked, her voice becoming more high pitched and irate with each syllable.

'Ryan. Stop. Now. Seriously, it's for your own good, she's dangerous when she's riled.' Seth advised, stepping forward to create a barrior between them.

'I am not!' Summer declared, placing her palm on Seth's chest and shoving him slightly

'Summer, you beat a guy over the head with an umbrella!'

'Yeah, well, he deserved it. He was a cretin!'

'You landed him in a hospital!' Seth countered, loving how fired-up he was making her.

'Would you shut up, Cohen?' Summer cried in exasperation. 'That was probably just a rumour…'

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Thanks to everyone who has reviewed so far - i really hope you guys enjoy this chapter. The next update should be soon because i'm off until Monday so i'll have some time. 


	15. Chapter 15

'Hey Ryan, come over to this side, you can see Buckingham Palace,' Marissa called happily, gesturing to her boyfriend.

Ryan crossed the capsule with a huge grin on his face and slid an arm around Marissa's shoulders. It had taken a lot of persuasion to even get him to join them that day but Marissa reminded him of one other ferris wheel ride which didn't turn out so bad and now that he was there, Ryan found that it was actually a lot scarier in his head. He never imagined when he was growing up that travelling and living this life could be a reality for him. Sometimes he still wondered how the hell he got so lucky.

Seth and Summer, however, were not quite so enamoured with the view from the London Eye. They had stepped on expecting it to be the mother of all fairground rides but found it travelled so slowly that movement was barely perceptible.

Now, stagnant at the top, they sat back-to-back on the bench which was in the centre of their enclosed pod.

'Ryan, dude, if Summer and I die before this thing ever gets back on the ground could you make sure they play 'Highway To Hell' at our funeral?' Seth asked dully.

'You don't even like ACDC,' Ryan answered distractedly, while simultaneously pointing out some new scenic wonder to Marissa.

'He's making a statement. It's meant to be ironic,' Summer called out, in a bored monotone.

'Yeah. What she said.' Seth confirmed before exclaiming excitedly, 'oh my god, are we moving!'

'I think we are!' Summer jumped up to her feet and continued thoughtfully, 'It's hard to tell, cause we're going at snail's pace but I think there is definite progress happening here,' she finished with a smile.

'We probably should have come at night, that would have been really beautiful,' Ryan commented, as they began their slow descent.

'Oh yeah, cause, clearly, that's what would make this more fun. Darkness.' Seth muttered sardonically while Summer rolled her eyes at him.

'Ooh, somebody's getting grumpy' she teased, rejoining him on the bench and slinging her arm round his neck.

'Ignore him, Ryan,' Marissa said dismissively, 'Y'know, I read that you can come and have dinner here in the evenings …'

'That's a hint, by the way,' Seth cut in with a half-dimpled smile.

'Yeah, caught that, man, thanks' Ryan deadpanned, turning his attention back to Marissa. 'Well, we still have a while left in London. So you never know when I might surprise you,' he finished slyly, moving towards his girlfriend …

'Oh, thank god, this thing is stopping, we don't have to watch you guys make out,' Summer said, sounding as though the very idea was revolting her.

'Hey, we had to deal with you and Seth all junior year so you got nothing to complain about!' Marissa protested, as they all stepped out to the bustling sounds of the city again.

'Come on! We were never that bad!' Seth chimed in.

'Yeah, you were!' When you guys finally got your act together it was like, 'Where's Summer?', 'Oh, probably attached to Seth's mouth,' Marissa re-enacted animatedly

'Shut up! Even after Summer managed to escape her denial –

' - and Cohen managed to escape Pittsburgh' Summer cut him off, shooting him an ironic glare.

'And Summer stopped interrupting me on, like, every third sentence! We still … actually you know what though,Marissa?' Seth continued, glancing towards her, ' Just based on recent events between Summer and I, there are so many different ways you could go if this little … sparring contest continues. So I'm just going to spare us all that suffering.'

Marissa looked blankly at Seth. 'That means you win sweetie,' Ryan translated.

* * *

'So, you wanna try and hail a cab home ? Ryan asked, turning his head sidways to look across the row of his friends as they walked through Westminster. 

'Well, we could just take the subway. Or the 'tube' or whatever it is they call it here' Marissa corrected herself.

'Marissa Cooper economising?' Summer exclaimed, feigning shock. 'We're thousands of miles away and your dad finally said no?'

Marissa smiled good-naturedly, 'Not quite, but I am running low since our little trip to Harrods.'

'Come on Riss,' Ryan chipped in, 'You didn't buy _that_ much. I think there were actually a few items left in the store when we left.'

'Funny,' was all the reply he received, as his girlfriend raised her eyebrows with a somewhat flirtatious smirk.

'Anyway,' Marissa continued, 'My account gets updated automatically on the first of the month so only a couple of days until I'm back on high class transportaion. If you can call London black taxi's high class,'she finished with a laugh and a very un-ladylike snort.

'That's valley-girl code for 'every month my daddy throws more money at me because I have, like, _nothing _to wear',' Seth mocked knowingly, rolling his eyes.

'Shut up Seth, you know you and Ryan will have a nice surprise in your bank accounts, courtesy of 'Direct Debit' too.' Marissa pointed out, actually managing to silence Seth Cohen.

'I cannot believe this you guys,' Summer whined, 'I just don't _do _public transport, I mean, it's so …' she paused, searching for the right word to voice her disgust.

'Eww…?' Seth inserted helpfully.

* * *

After much confusion attempting to make sense of the Underground maps, Ryan, Marissa, Seth and a very pissy Summer boarded the District Line, blindly hoping that it would return them to their Notting Hill hotel.

Coincidentally, it appeared to be rush hour, as the four friends became dispersed through the crowds of London commuters and Summer found herself crushed against a stranger. He gripped an anchor which was suspended from the ceiling and as a result, his left armpit was just level with Summer's face. She scrunched up her nose and tried to ignore the stink of cigarette smoke mingled with sweat. The man smiled down at her and Summer actually felt her skin crawl, although she did manage a weak smile in return. 'Happy thoughts,' she reminded herself, inhaling and exhaling deeply, but the sound of her voice was lost among all the pandemonium until all she could do was comfort herself with the thought that there was not a chance in hell she would ever set foot on the 'tube' again.

* * *

'I think have … what's it called, clinophobia.' Summer announced as they climbed the steps which would lead them out of the Underground. When they reached the top and found themselves in Notting Hill she noted with a wry smile that, in comparison, even the London city air seemed clean now.

'You do?' Seth enquired, sounding inexplicably amused.

Summer simply nodded as Seth continued, 'You have a fear of going bed?'

'What! No! I-'

' - Cause I could probably help you out with that.' Seth said suggestively, cutting off Summer's protests.

'_Seth_,' Summer replied disdainfully, 'if that was meant to be suave, charming or funny then it pretty much bombed on all three accounts.'

'Brutal,' Ryan commented, always a man of few words, as Seth just shoved his hands back in his pokets with a self-depricating smile and continued walking.

'Summ, I think maybe you mean 'claustrophobic',' Marissa spoke up, breaking the silence.

'Fear of confined spaces?'

'Uh huh' Marissa confirmed.

'Then I have that.'

'Really?' her friend responded, sounding concerned, 'What makes you think that?'

'Well, first there was this thing in Rome,' Summer began, looking up to share a glance with Seth, 'And then, just today, on the Underground. I felt trapped, y'know, like I couldn't breath and …' Summer paused for a second as Seth's arm found it's way around her waist. She smiled slightly at the comfort he always offered before continuing, 'I was surrounded by all these people and then there was this guy, who was clearly jailbait –'

'Oh yeah, we all have that,' Marissa interrupted shrewdly, 'otherwise known as the phobia of sleazy guys in close proximity.'

'I guesss,' Summer answered with a sigh. 'So what are you and Ryan up to tonight? She asked as they neared their hotel, trying to change the subject.

'Uh, Summer, I know you've never really understood the concept of privacy – particularly when other people want some of it – but there are things that are just between two people who lo-' Ryan began.

'Oh my god!' Summer shrieked, looking at Seth who could barely keep a straight face, 'If you could get your head out of the gutter for two seconds Ryan, I'm not interested in you and Coop, uh … _lovemaking_,' she spluttered.

Marissa, who's face had turned beet red, finally replied, 'There's a tapas bar on Portobello Road so we were gonna check that out. But now I'm thinking about just staying in and making list for Ryan. '10 Things Never To Say Under Any Circumstances', how about you guys?'

'Oh, just hanging out. Room service, movie, Cohen can give me a massage …' Summer trailed off.

Ryan looked to Seth for a reaction, who didn't even pretend to object to Summer's plan, demonstrating just how whipped he really was.

* * *

Just to let everyone know, i also post this on and usually post more quickly over there - anyway, if you want to leave a review that would be great :) 


	16. Chapter 16

'Alright man, well, me and Summer'll try and plan something for tomorrow … okay, I'll ask her but chances are slim to none … nah, we're just gonna hang out here tonight … I know – Summer's, uh, _customised _the suite already, it's like a home from home. If home was a pink, fluffy, sparkly oasis … right. Sure, have fun with that, see ya man' Seth hung up the phone with a click as Summer breezed into the living area of their London suite.

She had changed into plaid pyjama pants paired with a simple white tank top and her hair was thrown into loose, careless braids, framing her face. Seth loved her like this - innocently, naturally, beautiful. His eyes fleetingly glided over the bronzed expanse of skin left bare between the waistband of her bottoms and the hem of her shirt. Briefly, he wondered when exactly he had begun to revere each detail of her beauty again and the thought occurred to him that he had probably never stopped. Before Seth could continue pondering this inexplicable hold Summer Roberts had always had over him, he was interrupted by the sound of her voice.

'Ask me what?'

'What?' Seth replied, totally confused.

'Ryan wanted you to ask me something …?' she enquired.

'Oh! Yeah … how did you know that?'

'You're not the only one who hears like a wolf Cohen,' Summer answered with an amused smile.

'How did you …nevermind. Ryan just wanted to see if you were up for The National Gallery tomorrow.'

She laughed sardonically in reply. 'Like hell I am.'

'Well, great, cause he was worried this was going to be a problem,' Seth answered smugly.

'Oh, so cute,' Summer mocked, hurling a cushion at his head. 'I'm gonna call down for room service, you want anything?'

'I'm ok,' Seth said, shaking his head.

'You always say that and then you always eat half of my nachos.'

'Exactly, we've got a routine, it works for us.' Seth flashed her an angelic grin and she extended a hand to swipe at him.

'Don't give me that Seth Cohen, I'm immune to your charms.' She said cynically, privately conscious of how she melted when met with his puppy-dog eyes.

'Whatever Summer, violence is not the answer.' Seth sounded wounded, peering down at his shoulder where a tiny pink mark had emerged.

'Awww,' Summer cooed, seemingly remorseful. She had been heading through the archway into her bedroom but made a u-turn and hovered behind the sofa where poor little injured Seth sat. She draped an arm around him and bent down to place a sweet kiss on his temple. Her breath was warm and tickly as she said, directly in his ear, 'Don't be a baby Cohen.'

With that, she playfully mussed up his hair and rose quickly, going to call reception. Seth's eyes followed her as she left, with a mixture of irritation and admiration.

* * *

'Ok, should be here in about twenty minutes,' Summer said, re-entering the lounge. 'You didn't pick a movie without me did you?'

'Well, I was going to but then I thought I'd had enough of the bodily harm for one night. Let's see.' Seth began scrolling down the list of films available on the hotel pay channels and Summer flopped down beside him on the massive couch.

'_Titanic_. Been there, done that, just about lived through it. '_The Breakfast Club_.'

Summer's eyes lit up but Seth jumped in before she could get too excited. 'No. Summer, just … no.' Summer sighed but surprisingly let it go as Seth continued his commentary.

'_Diehard_. I'd like to believe I'm that masculine, but I'm just not.' Seth lamented as Summer smiled fondly. '_Sister Act_,' he continued, 'There are hardly words. Oh. This could be interesting, _One Night In Paris _…?' he questioned, raising an eyebrow.

'Ew, no!' Summer shrieked. 'They're actually still showing that! And here? I thought this was a nice place Cohen! Ughh, God, the mental pictures are just flooding back to me and it is not pretty.'

Seth chuckled at her reaction and skipped over a couple more made-for-tv family dramas. '_Legally Blonde 2_. Don't even think about it Sum, there is not a chance in hell,' he said cheerfully. '_Jurassic Park_, no, _There's Something About Mary_ …?

'We'll be eating food Cohen.'

'Right, gotcha. Oh my god, look here's one!'

Summer peered at the screen. '_Spiderman_? She asked sceptically

'That's right Summer,' Seth answered excitedly, 'I haven't seen this in years – if I was a girl, I would so be skipping right now.'

'Please, spare me.' Summer said dryly. 'I guess if you really want to we can watch it though – it's probably the best of a bad bunch.'

'Summer,' Seth began seriously, turning to face her, 'Out of all of the people in the world that I know, you are _so_ my favourite.'

She laughed in reply, 'Ok, well, that's a good thing I think. Anyway, Tobey McGuire's hot.'

'You think?'

'Totally. But, then, apparently I have a thing for geeks.' She said casually, her lips curving upwards into a coy smile.

* * *

Twenty minutes later, Tobey McGuire had just made the transition from scrawny to superhero and Seth and Summer had unconsciously gravitated towards each other on the plump suede couch.

Summer lay horizontally, on her side, with her legs bent slightly at the knees and her head resting on Seth's lap. Seth had made an, admittedly weak, protest at Summer monopolizing more than her quota of space, but eventually just settled for sitting upright, with his arm loosely curled around her waist.

They lay like this, engrossed in the movie – although probably for different reasons – as if it was the most natural thing in the world. And, in truth, they had been friends so long, it probably was. However, it didn't last much longer as the low buzz of the intercom disturbed their peaceful domesticity.

'Mmmm,' Summer groaned sleepily, in discontent. 'That's room service, can you get the door?'

'How's that gonna work, Sum? You're lying on top of me.' Seth pointed out.

'Well, if I get up, will you go?'

'Nope.' Seth answered casually, with an infuriating grin.

'Please?' she whined.

'Hey, you were the one who ordered it!'

'Ughh, fine!' Summer huffed, grabbing the remote and pausing the film.

'Aww, baby. You're just a poor little rich girl, huh?' Seth called after her as she walked towards the door. She smiled slightly and rolled her eyes, safe in the knowledge that he couldn't see her expression.

'Sorry to have kept you waiting.' Summer greeted the waiter with a charming smile.

'No trouble at all,' He replied, in a crisp British accent. 'Tortillas with a selection of dips?'

Summer nodded in affirmation, taking the large platter from him.

'Would you like that on your charge or …?' The waiter trailed off politely.

'No, it's ok, I may as well just pay now.' Summer answered easily. 'Cohen?' she called, 'can you throw me my wallet - it's in my coat pocket.'

'Sure.' Seth rooted around in the pockets of Summer's dusky green jacket, which was draped over the arm of the sofa. On finding nothing but a few leftover Euro coins from Rome and – horror of horrors – a tampon, he very hastily retreated. 'Not here Sum.'

'Ok, well then get me _your _wallet,' Summer called back airily.

'Oh.' He said sarcastically, '_Smooth_, Summer.' He fished a crumpled ten pound note from his back pocket and handed it to the waiter, who shot him an empathetic smile, the subtext of which clearly being: _'Women. They take our money and make us pretend to care about throw pillows and storage boxes. What can you do?'_ Seth smiled in response. 'Keep the change, man'

'Ah!' Summer slapped Seth's hand away from the bowl for the fifth time in as many minutes. 'No touching! You didn't want any, remember?'

'Yeah, that was before you forced me to pay for it,' Seth complained.

'Oh, cut the crap, you totally did that willingly!' Summer replied in protest.

'Huh. Must have missed that part.'

'It was right after you couldn't be assed to look for my wallet.' She sniped.

'Well, what coat did you mean? You did bring, uh, quite a few.' Seth said carefully.

'The green one. The one I was wearing today.'

'Yeah, that was the one I looked in the pockets of,' he confirmed nonchalantly, flipping the movie on again.

'Obviously you didn't look hard enough!' Summer sounded slightly irritated, 'Why are guys so completely useless?'

Seth obviously sensed the question's rhetorical nature and wisely offered no reply as Summer leaned across him to reach for her jacket.

He looked on while she rummaged in her pockets and came up with nothing. 'Not there, Summer?' he asked, in a distinctly amused tone.

Summer just shot him a glance. 'Shut up Cohen.'

She then proceeded to tip the entire contents of her purse and shopping bags out onto the floor. After retrieving her cell phone and iPod, sifting through multiple lipgloss tubes and Europe guide books and discovering a lone earring she didn't know she owned, Summer appeared to come to a conclusion.

'My wallet is gone,' she stated flippantly.

'Well, when was the last time you had it?' Seth questioned calmly, muting the cries of one very distressed Mary Jane.

'I don't know.' Summer shifted her position on the sofa, twisting her legs up under her so she was sitting Indian style. Her eyebrows straightened into a single line and her nose creased as her lips became pursed in a lopsided curve. Seth couldn't help but smile. These were sure signs of concentration.

'Well, I definitely had it when we were getting The Underground,' she began cautiously, 'cause I paid for all of us.'

'And you're absolutely sure you haven't had it since then?'

'Yeah,' Summer answered, more certainly now. 'I was at the cashier desk thingy, and then, I was in such a rush and it was so crowded, I just shoved my wallet in my pocket'.

'Ok, so somewhere between getting on the Tube and arriving back here, something happened to your wallet,' Seth deducted.

'Oh, well done, Sherlock.'

'Could you have lost it?' Seth asked, ignoring her sarcasm.

'No.' Was Summer's simple reply and Seth didn't press the matter any further, intuitively feeling that she was dangerously on the verge of either a rage blackout or just collapsing in tears. He didn't know which would be worse.

'Looks like it got stolen then.'

'I think I might have noticed, Cohen,' she countered dryly.

'Maybe not, I mean, we were all split up and it was pretty crowded. I read about this in all the tourist brochures. Was there anybody standing really close to you? Cause it really would have been pretty easy to-'

'That bastard!' Summer exploded, cutting him off.

'That's a 'yes' then.' Seth said quietly, with a nod, and waited for her to continue.

'Ugh, he was so leery and perverted. And he smelled! And,' she added with a flourish, 'he had a beard _and_ a moustache. I mean, that's evidence enough right there – my dad always told me never to trust a man with facial hair.'

Seth opened his mouth to speak, but found he just didn't have an adequate response to Summer's claim. A puzzled, 'Huh' was all he could manage.

'We gotta call the cops Seth! I am bringing this guy down!'

* * *

Sorry it has taken so long to get this out. But at least my chapters are a little longer now, right? Anyway, i hope that you liked this and will review - thanks :) 


	17. Chapter 17

Hey! This chapter is pretty short. To be honest I would have preferred not to post it and to wait until I had written another scene. However, I am going on vacation first thing tomorrow morning, I haven't packed yet and this really is all I have time to do. I know people have been anxious for more of this so i guess I am assuming that something is better than nothing.

It has been a while since my last update of this one, so people might like to read back a couple of chapters, as i have been trying to set this scenario up for a while. I don't know if I did too good a jub though

* * *

When Summer recounted her story to the policeman, it had suddenly seemed rather insignificant and she could practically see the thought bubbles forming above his head: _'Young + Rich + Pretty + American Tourist Stupid. Stupid enough to let herself get pick-pocketed on the London Underground.'_ And that was just not the best equation for Summer's happiness. She sank down onto the plush caramel couch in the hotel lobby, faintly wishing she could simply disappear into it. Moments later, Seth sat down, draping his arm around her and kneading the muscles at the juncture of her neck and shoulders. 

'Cops gone?' he asked softly.

'Cop. Singular,' Summer corrected, 'and, yeah, he's gone.'

'Well, what did he say?'

'You want the edited version? He's sorry for my trouble, he'll file a report, I have no concrete evidence, this happens all the time, and ultimately, he's gonna do fuck all. Oh, and he advises me to cancel my credit card.'

'Well, uh, the guy at the desk says he can sort that out if you tell him who to call,' Seth replied, thankful to have some kind of response to offer. Summer only nodded mutely and he decided there and then that seeing her sad and not being able to do a thing to make it better was definitely one of the more heartbreaking ordeals he'd ever experienced.

He moved his arm down to encircle Summer's waist, cuddling her close and she fell against him, resting her head below his chin

'This sucks,' she stated finally.

Seth shifted uncomfortably. 'Yeah. Um, the thing is, Summer,' he stalled and cleared his throat. 'The thing is … well, you remember when we were all talking about taking this trip and my parents and your dad and the Coopers asked if we wanted them to pay for all the hotels in advance?'

Seth didn't wait for a reaction and began to talk faster and faster. 'And we said no, just book them and we'll decide how many days we want to stay in each place after that. And then they said that was a very unreliable way to travel and we said that these kind of trips are supposed to be unreliable and we wanted freedom, in case we, like, wanted to take a day trip or something.'

Summer paused for a second, trying to process everything he had just said, and then nodded in affirmation.

'And remember how my mom doesn't trust Ryan and I with credit cards? And how Marissa's broke cause of shopping. Big surprise there, right? And how you were the one paying for this hotel. By credit card?'

'Yeah,' she answered, looking at him like he had gone insane.

'You really don't see where I'm going with this?' Seth asked desperately.

'Ok, Cohen, I'm really tired, I don't have the energy to play cryptic clues with you, what the _hell_ are you talking about?

'We don't have any money.' He said bluntly. 'Or at least, not enough money to stay in a 5 star hotel in Notting Hill so …' Seth trailed off carefully.

'_Ohhh_. Oh _my_ God.' Summer unconsciously brought her hand up to her face and shook her head in disbelief. 'This cannot be happening,' she muttered to herself. 'So we have to leave? Like, now?'

'No, they're, uh, letting us stay tonight. You know, what with the trauma you've suffered and all. And they're bringing us two coffees. On the house.'

Summer snorted. 'You have _got_ to be kidding me. Tequila would be more like it.'

* * *

I wish i had time to do more, cause i feel like i owe you guys a better update than that, after such a long wait. All I can do is promise that when I get back, I will have all of August off, so I'll try and pick up the pace a bit then. Have a good summer :D  



	18. Chapter 18

Is anyone else having problems uploading or is it just me? Anyways, i said i would be back with this one and here i am. I'm really kind of apprehenisve about it because it's been so long and i don't feel like i've done a very good job with the story so far, but if people are still kind enough to show interest, then obviously i will keep writing. Hope you enjoy.

* * *

Summer sat next to Seth on a bench in Hyde Park, looking at her two friends opposite, and all their luggage cluttered around. Not for the first time the last 24 hours, she put her head in her hands and muttered, "I don't believe this is happening."

Seth nudged her shoulder gently with his, making her smile. "Come on Sum, it's not so bad," he said. "Look, today's the 28th, right? So, all our accounts are gonna be updated automatically on the 1st anyway and then we fly out of here on the 2nd. It'll be fine."

"I still think we should call home," Ryan interjected sensibly, looking to his girlfriend for back-up.

"I don't know," Marissa stated. "I mean, it's not like we have _no_ money – just … very little. We can cope for two days – but if my mom knew about this, she'd have me straight on the next plane back to Newport."

"My dad would probably come and drag me home himself," Summer added. "He's already super-protective-"

"I'll say," Seth coughed.

Summer paused to look at him in comic shock, sticking her tongue out at him. However, before she could say anything, her expression changed to one of serenity. Clearly, she had elected to be the bigger person. "_Anyway_," she continued seriously, "the point is, I just really don't want to give him a reason not to trust me here."

Ryan, evidently still worried, looked to his brother for support.

Keenly away of Summer's pleading eyes, Seth weighed the situation carefully. He had plenty of experience in screwing things up, and knew he was lucky enough to have good parents who, in all likelihood, were probably just waiting for something like this to happen. The money wouldn't be a problem, his and Ryan's accounts would be updated immediately and they could all make a most welcome return to the Marriot in Notting Hill.

The only problem being, Summer clearly didn't want to do that. He didn't know if she'd quite thought through the prospect of the next two nights in economy accommodation, and was aware that he would probably bear the brunt of her complaining, but still. Right now, his priority was making sure that Summer was ok, and he really needed her to know that he was on her side.

He looked at Ryan and sighed. "Two nights, man. It'll be cool – what they don't know won't hurt us."

Ryan raised an eyebrow but nodded. "Ok. So …what? Youth hostel or something? I mean, we probably have enough for a cheaper-than-cheap hotel in a bad part of town, but frankly, that's not looking too appealing right now, and I'm not telling Marisssa's dad that I took her to Europe and got her gang raped or something."

"Well, I took Summer to Europe and got her robbed," Seth pointed out, and Ryan looked guilty.

"Aw, look, I'm sorry dude, I didn't mean-"

"You didn't do anything, Cohen," Summer interrupted. "You didn't make that guy steal my wallet."

"I didn't make that guy _not_ steal your wallet," Seth replied ruefully.

She frowned. "That doesn't even make any sense. Believe me Cohen, if I'm blaming anyone for this whole …_situation_, it's most definitely not you."

"Ok!" Marissa jumped up blithely, effectively cutting off the beginnings of any heavy conversations. "This is not the worst thing that could of happened, you guys. Now; let's go find somewhere to sleep tonight!"

* * *

The Astor Victoria Hostel cost 10 pounds a night and was by no means the worst place they could have ended up. It was rather small, and probably in need of modernization, but it was clean and seemed safe, which left it streets ahead of many other similar establishments the four teens had trawled already that day.

The Centre consisted of a small kitchen – apparently almost permanently occupied by a carer named Pat – a communal living area, a games room, which housed nothing but a pool table and a few bathrooms. The two long bedrooms, much to Marissa's dismay, were single-sex, and really more like dormitories, each filled with rows of bunk beds.

As luck would have it, there weren't many other residents that night: a couple of homeless kids and some backpackers from Holland. Seth, Summer, Ryan and Marissa spent most of the day at the park, since the weather had picked up, and returned to the Astor Victoria in the evening. After a Happy Meal each for dinner and a few hours of pool championships, they all headed off to bed, resolving to think of some fun, yet inexpensive activities to do on their last day in London.

Almost one hour later and Seth still couldn't sleep. The room smelled funny, there was a Dutch guy opposite him snoring like a foghorn and Ryan had been out like a light about forty-five minutes ago. All in all, Seth couldn't see himself getting a wink of sleep that night. He strained to see his watch in the semi-darkness. 12:17am – that was still pretty early.

Indeed, when he – against his better judgement – crept out of his own dormitory towards the adjoining one, he noticed the supervisor still working on the computer, and a couple of kids playing some video game on the old TV. Seth took a couple of minutes to observe the battle on the screen. "Amateurs," he muttered derisively and continued on his way.

He fervently hoped that none of the girls would wake up and start screaming blue murder and he edged towards Summer and Marissa's bunk, hoping at least one of them would be awake to keep him company. As he drew nearer, he could hear muted cries and laborious breathing. When he realized what was happening, Seth stopped immediately. He literally felt sick to hear her cry. He'd realised about ten years previous, and increasingly in the last two, that to see Summer Roberts hurt or sad in any way was practically unbearable – a duller but more devastating ache than his own pain. He bent down to the bottom bunk and shook her shoulder through the heavy quilt.

"Summer."

His whisper was barely audible but she turned around almost immediately.

"What's wrong?" he asked desperately. She rubbed her tears away with the back of her hand and gave a watery smile.

"Nothing," she replied. "I'm just being stupid. Please, Cohen, just go back to bed – you weren't supposed to see me. _Please_."

Seth looked around quickly, listening to the heavy breathing all around him. "Look, I don't wanna wake anybody up," he said, in a low tone. "But, come talk to me for a second, ok?"

Summer, already embarrassed, looked like there was nothing she'd like less, but didn't resist when he tugged at her wrists, pulling her out of bed. She followed him into the open-plan lounge, wincing at the bright light, to a relatively private spot in the far corner where a pile of huge cushions had been thrown on the floor to create a makeshift seating area.

"Talk to me," he said simply, when they were both seated.

She shrugged evasively. "What do you wanna talk about?"

"I don't know, how about whatever it is that's making you so upset."

"I don't really want to go into it, Cohen," she replied tiredly.

"Well, we're gonna," he fired back matter-of-factly. "Come on Summer, who else are you gonna tell?"

"No one!" she was definitely irritated. "God, Cohen, can't you just leave me be when I ask you to? We don't have to tell each other every little thing."

"Oh, well excuse me for giving a shit when I find you crying alone in the middle of the night," he answered sarcastically. "Sorry Summer, whether you want me to or not, I care about you."

Her eyes softened. "I know. I'm sorry – I care about you too."

She paused and looked down at her hands, fidgeting with them self-consciously. "Look, it's no big deal Cohen, nobody's, like, died or anything." Summer had hoped to just brush the whole silly thing off, but looking in his eyes, she knew that at this point, if she'd so much as broken a nail he would care about it.

"If you're worried about money, then don't be," Seth said. "The credit card people are just gonna set you up with a new chip and pin and send it on to the apartment in Paris. Your dad never has to know if you don't want him to."

"Oh, I know, everyone's been great – thanks for sorting everything out," she paused. "It's just … this was supposed to be, like, our dream trip, y'know – and now look at us…" she glanced around the sparse room, happy to note that the video-game kids were completely oblivious to them. A few quiet tears that she just couldn't help slipped down Summer's cheeks and she forced herself to look at him through her embarrassment, knowing he would appreciate it.

"Everyone's vacation is ruined, and it's all my fault and I'm just so _sorry,_" she murmured.

Although Seth was thankful her problem wasn't a more serious one, he still frowned. "Ok Summer." He sounded genuinely confused. "How is this your fault? I mean, none of us have any money left, it's not just you."

"I know but it's the hotel. It was on my card," she replied dejectedly.

"Yeah, and the last one was on mine, and the next one will be on Marissa's. We're all gonna take our turn Sum – you were just unlucky."

"But if I hadn't gotten my wallet stolen then we wouldn't be here, and Ryan wouldn't have had to eat a McDonalds even though he's against them on principle and Coop wouldn't be annoyed –"

"Ok! Ok, stop, Summer." He looked into her eyes. "This is _not _your fault," he said, slowly and assertively. "Nobody is blaming you for the fact that your wallet was stolen, or for the fact that we had McDonalds, or for the fact that we're here. I happen to know for a fact that Ryan secretly enjoys a McFlurry every once in a while and Marissa," he paused and rolled his eyes. "Don't even worry about her – she loves you, she'll be back to her perky self by the morning. She's just pissed she's not getting any tonight."

"Ew!" Summer giggled, looking more like herself already. "Well … I guess it's not so terrible then." She looked around at the living area. "But Cohen, if this is how most kids have to live on their gap years, then I have never been so glad to be rich in my entire life."

He laughed. "Well, I guess I'm just another spoiled Newport kid after all then, cause I totally agree."

"There's probably tons of free stuff we could do tomorrow anyways," she replied happily. It seemed almost miraculous that all of her previous insecurities and concerns had dissipated just like that, after one conversation with Seth.

"I'll be fun," he answered. "We can see how the other half lives. Anyway, as I remember it, you were pretty good at that bartering stuff in Rome. We'll have to go down to Camden Market or something tomorrow – between my charm and your good looks we'll be unstoppable," he grinned.

She smiled in return. "Deal," she agreed, glancing at her watch. "It's getting late though – I should get back to bed if I wanna be on tip-top form."

He nodded.

"And don't come stalking me this time!" Summer added playfully. She moved to get up from the floor, but seemed to think better of it, pausing before moving closer to him on the cushions and curling her arms tightly around his neck. "Thanks, Cohen," she said softly.

"Hey. Anytime," he murmured, a sudden sense of quiet calm washing over him as he felt her hair against his cheek. They were in a grubby corner of a youth hostel in England – so far from where Seth ever thought they'd end up. But Summer was happy again – he had made her happy again – so somehow everything seemed right with the world.

She pulled away and he kissed her forehead, as was customary. She smiled up at him happily, so he kissed her left cheek, more as a joke then anything else. But she giggled again, so he dropped a light kiss on her right cheek, and then it was like he was just magnetically drawn towards her mouth. It felt like he couldn't _not_. Like maybe she even tilted her head up towards him, and seemed to visibly relax in relief when his lips finally touched hers.

It was, literally, the lightest brushing of lips – barely anything – and as gentle as any of his previous kisses on her face. It wasn't frantic, it wasn't sexual – there were no expectations or intentions. But maybe whatever simultaneous need they felt couldn't be satisfied by a hug from Marissa or a brotherly chat with Ryan. Maybe they both just needed _more_. And maybe this, in its simplicity, was the only way they knew how to give that to each other.

Seth pulled away about five centimetres from her face, and she returned for more, imitating his previous motion and placing her lips on his in a slow, soft kiss. He had one hand on her neck and one touching her hair, and she could feel the beginnings of stubble on his cheek with tentative fingertips.

Summer realised then, in that moment, that they were both just fucking petrified – of what exactly, she wasn't sure. But she knew that it was entirely possible that neither of them would mention this stolen moment ever again. They would never joke about it: "…Oh, remember that time when we kissed at the hostel? Like it was our first kiss, with anyone, ever, and we were both so nervous you would never have believed that we were nineteen and, in fact, had actually had seen each other naked before. Remember how I couldn't breath, couldn't think because of the feeling of your mouth on my skin…?"

Summer guessed that Seth had come to the same realisation, as he eventually pulled her up and kissed her on the forehead again, his arm lightly around her shoulders. Back to where they'd started – companions. And while that didn't quite have the heady, intoxicating intensity of …anything else, it was still a safe, comfortable and overall pretty nice place to be. It was like a waiting room, almost, and they could both stay there until they weren't so afraid of stepping outside and making that leap.

"Night, Cohen," she said quietly, tip-toeing through the doorway of her dormitory.

He smiled. "Night, Summer."

* * *

...is nervous...What did you think? 


End file.
